What's the secret to changing down gear smoothly? Maintain light pressure on the accelerator pedal as you press the clutch down, change gear and then clutch up gently (or the car will jerk). Using the accelerator will raise your engine speed to match your road speed, ultimately giving you a jerk free gear change.
You'll make much smoother gear changes if you lighten up the pressure you apply on the pedals and the force with which you pull the gearstick. Lightly press the clutch to engage it, don't stamp on it. Similarly when you release it, do so smoothly, to prevent the car from lurching.
What you are describing may be a result of a faulty speed sensor, potentially low transmission fluid or a even a faulty transmission control solenoid. As your vehicle travels down the road, the computer analyzes data being sent by vehicle speed sensors and engine speed sensors.
Before turning the car on, locate the clutch. The clutch must be pressed down when shifting gears! Practice pressing and releasing the clutch pedal with your left foot. You will begin to feel (in your foot) when the clutch is engaged or disengaged.
To change gear in a car:
Release the accelerator pedal and at the same time press the clutch pedal down. Remove your left hand from the steering wheel, cup it around the gear knob and move the lever gently but positively from one position to another.
Rough jerking when shifting
It might feel like a jerk, clunk or thud. This is usually caused by troubles with the vacuum, transmission fluid or a faulty sensor. The vacuum modulator valve helps older vehicles determine when to shift gears. There's a hose that connects the valve with the intake through a hose.
As you start to bring the clutch pedal up, you should slowly start to press down on the accelerator pedal. Think of it as a see-saw, if you will. As you bring up the clutch and push down on the gas, there will be an equilibrium in which the car is completely still.
This can cause the clutch release bearing to be in contact with the clutch cover and creating friction when it doesn't need to be and over time, will lead to noise and failure of the clutch, which is an expensive repair.
For one reason or another, there are times were you think it might be beneficial to start off from a stop in second gear rather than first in your manual transmission car. In most cases, though, doing that will cause more wear on your clutch.
Don't leave the car in gear at stoplights.
You also don't want to leave it in first gear while stopped. So, always keep your car in neutral at a light or longer stop and just keep the brake pedal engaged.
theres no problem in turning off the engine in first gear only if you have brought your car to a halt if your car is still moving and you turn off the engine it is not advisable. handbrake should be pulled at inclined surface and put the car in gear incase handbrake fails to operate.
As long as your car is getting into gear and moving, it's fine. If you want the noticeable jerks to be less noticeable, then hold your clutch in the friction zone a bit longer. You'll feel the gears link up, and you can slowly release from there. Going from 3-4 and 4-5 should be pretty easy to do smoothly.
Jerking is bad if you do it too much or you jerk it hard. It will damage or wear out the transmission gear itself. If you have a rear wheel drive, it will shorten the life of the u joint and put stress on the rear differential. Chances are, the u joint will wear out faster than the deferential.
Changing up gears
Under normal driving conditions, this means changing up if the rev counter reaches between 2500-3000rpm. Under hard acceleration, you will change up a gear when you feel the acceleration drop away, which is usually above 6000rpm in a petrol-powered engine, but less if it's diesel-powered.
While braking, you should always depress the clutch.
This is one of the most common scenarios wherein people do apply the brakes but forget to disengage the clutch in-turn stalling the car. Well, stalling the car especially with transmission load will take a serious toll on your vehicle's gearbox assembly.
You're more likely to stall or have a shaky stop if you're driving slowly below 10mph and press the brake first then clutch. You can also press both the clutch and brake at the same time when you're driving slowly if needed.
Not engaging the clutch while shifting gears can be harmful to the transmission of your car. Understand that the main function of a clutch is to control the contact between transmission and engine. The car can run into a series of jerky motions as it struggles to find the right balance between gears and engine's speed.
The choice largely depends on how soon you'll be driving again. At a stop sign, you almost always should be in first gear, ready to press the gas pedal and go. If you used the technique where you brake without downshifting and the clutch pedal pushed in, shift into first as soon as you stop.